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Pyrethrin Phototoxicity in Trinidad Scorpions

theghostpepperstore

theghostpepperstore

So I have been fighting a cucumber beetle invasion for a couple of weeks. They finally got bad enough that I decided to take drastic action and bought this

http://www.biconet.com/botanicals/infosheets/takedownRTULabel.pdf

I wouldn't normally use pyrethrin due to the fact that it is non-specific but nothing else was making a dent in the beetles. I have never seen cucumber beetles do any significant damage to peppers until this year. I am assuming because of the drought there isn't much else to eat around here.

I sprayed all of the peppers in one garden, bhuts and butch t's with a 2% pyrethrin spray. Two days later and the Butch T's are about 50-75% defoliated. They just shed like crazy, look really burnt. The bhuts are perfectly fine. I am just wondering if anyone else has ever noticed such a severe difference between varieties when using pyrethrin? It is definitely not something I will be using again anytime soon.
 
Pyrethrin knocked around some of my wilds pretty badly last year. It actually *killed* my C. praetermissum plants! I won't touch it again either.
 
I've never used that stuff before so really can't say.
When things got bad I have used Malathion or Triazicide concentrate.
Never noticed any ill effects on the plants using them.



Good luck
-Brent
 
Yeah me either. I know the photo toxicity is supposed to be worse when they are mixed with petroleum products which is why I thought this would be safe. Oh well lesson learned. The plants were pretty strong before this happened and I m sure they will pull through.
 
I've used pyrethrin before without any defoliation or other problems. Like some of the others said, it could be some of the other inactive ingredients that are causing additional problems. Another thing I've noticed is that a very light misting of the spray is extremely effective. It is possible a saturation clogged up the stomata and cause some suffocation problems. Just a guess though...
 
Definitely a possibility that I over sprayed them. They were also the first plants to get sprayed out of the bunch so maybe the concentration was higher to start off with. Usually my tank sprayer doesn't have problems with mixing but anything is possible.

I guess the moral of the story is just be careful with it. It definitely knocked the crap out of the beetles. I have only seen 2 of them since I sprayed.
 
Interesting.
Last year the first anti bug treatment I used was oil based, and it screwed up all the seedlings.
I switched to pyrenthrum later last season on for all my plants and had no ill effects.

Used pyrethrum this year on younger seedlings, and they got all screwed up. Under the leaves had brown veins/marks, leaves yellowed and dropped. Probably too strong a mix I guess, or they are more sensitive when younger.
In that case maybe your mix was too strong or maybe some plants more sensitive that others. For example, all of my TS die! Finnicky things I think they are.
 
Pablo_h said:
Interesting.
Last year the first anti bug treatment I used was oil based, and it screwed up all the seedlings.
I switched to pyrenthrum later last season on for all my plants and had no ill effects.

Used pyrethrum this year on younger seedlings, and they got all screwed up. Under the leaves had brown veins/marks, leaves yellowed and dropped. Probably too strong a mix I guess, or they are more sensitive when younger.
In that case maybe your mix was too strong or maybe some plants more sensitive that others. For example, all of my TS die! Finnicky things I think they are.
Click to expand...

My leafs appear exactly like yours that you mention, so I am pretty sure it is the same symptom. Too high a concentration for the TS or inconsistent mixing in the sprayer.
 
I'm having the same problem. Have a constant amount of aphids on my plants. I've been using Pyrenthrum too. And I have been noticing the same effects, browning on the underside of my leaves and leaf shedding!

The bhuts dont seem to be affected by the spray, but.. my morugas, TS's and the rest of them are shedding like crazy.

I think I will stop with the pyrenthrum and go to a soup and water treatment instead. Any improvments since your last post ghostpepperstore?
 
I have been continuing to use it in the greenhouse and I think as long as I keep it to a 1% solution it is pretty safe and effective. This may vary between Pyrenthrum products, but it seems to be working for this particular one.
 
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